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Chinese tourists are willing to spend as much as 164,000 yuan, or US$26,000, per person for a trip to the South Pole during the upcoming Spring Festival, Ctrip said on Tuesday.

This year's public holiday, also known as Chinese New Year, falls between February 15 and 21.

In its 2018 Outbound Tourism Price Index report, the Shanghai-based online travel agency estimated that the average spending of Chinese citizens travelling overseas during the golden week holiday will reach 9,500 yuan (US$1,500) and that Antarctica is the most expensive destination, China News Service reports.

The list also includes Argentina, Brazil, Tahiti, Norway, Tanzania, Iceland, Mexico, New Zealand and Finland. However, at 75,000 yuan (US$12,000), Argentina, the second most expensive location, comes in at less than half the price of a trip to Antarctica.

Antarctic tourism has gained momentum among Chinese adventurers in recent years. According to the latest statistics released by the International Association of Antarctica Tour Operators (IAATO), 5,286 Chinese visitors made the trip during the 2016-2017 tourism season, which equates to 12 percent of the total number of arrivals. This means China has now overtaken Australia to become the region's second largest tourist source.

Despite the cost, the number of tourists booking holidays to the planet's southernmost point on Ctrip has doubled in the last 12 months.

Chi Dehua
has been a staff editor at GBTIMES since 2013. She covers foreign affairs, business and culture.